I am super amazed at these 3 people and their willingness to take a risk, to put themselves first and rise to the occasion. So they didn’t met the time cut off, what they learned through this process about themselves and hopefully change their life’s going forward is really what the win was about. DNF is not did not finish but did not fail.
At first I was scratching my head at what this project was asking them to do. On paper it did go about how you’d expect. They’re positive attitudes about the whole thing really left me inspired though. Being able to just be grateful for the experience is something I can really struggle with. This was amazing to see.
I get why some folks say this is way too much to ask of new cyclists because Leadville is hard for people that have been riding for years, but I find it to still be useful and a fun show. As far as taking spots from people, there are lots of sponsor's exemption spots every year that get used however they see fit. I wouldn't worry about these three spots taking away from anyone in the lottery. As a cyclist that has ridden for years and trained, I get inspired by these riders attempting something that is out of their depth right now. If they keep riding, each year they'll get a little faster and maybe could finish at some point. It would have been good to see if Enzo had been able to improve on his first try because I assume he would have. And while I find it frightening to watch newbie mountain bikers attempting to descend anything, gotta hand it to them for trying and maybe they will become life-long cyclists from the experience. So it's all worth it.
Kudos to the 3 riders for giving it their all - it takes courage to line up. This race isn't easy for beginners. I finished it with less than 6 months MTB experience, but it's really only because I already had the fitness/endurance needed from ultrarunning. Not to be negative, but I am not sure if any of them had a realistic shot even from the start of the project. So again, kudos for all the training and efforts
So my opinion has evolved on this project. I totally get that the math doesn’t add up for the participants to finish Leadville, but their positive attitude before, during and after the 40 mile cuttoff is what makes it worth watching.
I did LV for the first time in August, age 59. Trained for 6 months, not much of a cyclist before, and 200 lbs with little fat. Was much harder than I thought it would be. I was official finisher in 12:22, but super bummed no buckle. If you train, fuel and hydrate correctly, its all w/kg, pure physics. Tell some experienced your w/kg, they'll predict your finishing time with good accuracy. Hope to go back in '24. Spending this year getting more miles. You can't believe how fast the fast people go.
I very much enjoyed the experience. Thanks for sharing this with us. I would have been shocked and pleased if any of them had made it. But great job. Any time you push yourself to try something you don't know if you can do it helps you to grow. Congratulations 🎉🎉.
Loved this series, you picked a great group, loved their attitudes and the different characters, loved watching them train, progress and even race… but I have to agree with some of the other comments Leadville seems to be the wrong race? Would be great to see them be able to finish a race even if it’s in last place.
All those negative comments here, man, how can you watch three complete newbies at the sport push themselves to the limit and beyond, and see their joy, and not share in that? The series is called FTGU for a reason. It's about getting people involved in the sport and share in the sense of community and achievement, whatever that looks like. Sure, Leadville may be "too hard", but does not making the cutoff negate all the effort that went into the prep? Don't think so. It's all about endurance - coming back to try again and again until you succeed. Seriously wish people could be more positive because this is an awesome project and series! Hope there'll be more!
Have really enjoyed this series. We elk hunt a lot in the exact same areas that the race takes place and as an avid mountain biker as well, hats off to these folks. Leadville and the altitude is no joke, I don't care who you are. No desire to do the race, but one of these years I'm going to actually ride my bike up there....lol.
I hope they come back in the future and finish, a race like Leadville takes years to train up to. I understand the time cutoff, I've been caught out in storms twice in those very same mountains even well before noon (thundersnow on Elbert and hail on La Plata). This race also gives new meaning to "Sawatch Sufferfest" (the 14,000ft peaks in the Sawatch range are called sufferfests because they tend to be long slogs with a TON of elevation gain, but aren't very technical)
These folks never had a chance at finishing BUT they just raced a 40 mile MTB race at over 10k' and finished. That is more than most people can say. Good on them for giving it everything they had! They should feel nothing but proud of themselves.
I love this project. I do an event every year in Michigan called Massive fallout. It’s not as intense as this race. 100 miles over 6 blue MTB trails will push you to your limits. It’s an awesome close to the MTB season here in SE Michigan.
From episode one, it was clear the Leadville race was going to be too big of a task for the participants selected. Maybe Outside got what they wanted out of the show, but from a viewers perspective, I want to see someone actually finish.
Or even just making it to the first checkpoint. I would have been fine with having one or two making it past the first checkpoint and barely making it to the second.
They all did as good as they could and kudos to them.I do agree it was to much to bite off for any newbie with out he natural physical ability not saying that any of them could not get there just a lot more time is needed for any one. Maybe a race where there skill is more important.
Definitely agree. We also only are seeing a fraction of what they accomplished. They definitely improved a ton to be able to make it to this point and I hope they all got a bit of the fire put in them to keep improving and going further!
This series is so confusing. Their level of fitness is simply not even remotely close to what is necessary for finishing an event like this... Why not pick a different event that is hard but doable or pick people with a bit more skill and fitness so they actually have a shot to make it? I't's one thing to leave your comfort zone and try something hard but this is taking it way to far:) Additionaly, their skill level and experience on the bike is not enough for this event. FFS the video even mentions that they have to make up time in the descent?
Agree with your comment and after the first episode unfortunately I new none of them would complete or even come close to completing the race but I watched anyway.
Because it's for "novice" bikers. It's not about the race it's about challenging them. Having them push their bodies reminds them how out of shape they are. Some people need that kind of wake up call to take better care of their bodies.
@@shellyg8617 I get the idea of the race but this just does not seem to be the event for it... What would be wrong with for example Unbound? Inherently much safer for novice riders(No treacherous descents while being completely exhausted for example ) and there is a challenging distance for any participant?
Completely agree. There’s a reason you need to qualify for this. It was painful watching the overweight dude. Good for him trying a challenge but they have no idea the training it takes or put in the work for the fitness.
This experiment is a failure. Kudos to 3 participants for their effort, but the expectation is unrealistic. Agree with previous comments. Either pick people with better fitness or set a more realistic goal.
This is a monster of a race to put newbies through. I think the makers failed them, and should learn the SMART method of goal setting. Otherwise this is a waste of time for the participants, the audience and everybody involved.
Who is allowing these people to sign up for a race they’re wholly unqualified to attempt. All these people would need 3-4 more years of training to even have a chance. Kind of sad that these people took spots away from deserving athletes who had a chance of finishing.
Totally agree with you. I have been unable to lottery in despite multiple attempts. I have raced mt bikes for years (including the Silver Rush 50 3 Times) and know I can finish the LT 100 but somehow these novice riders get in but not those who actually take this sport seriously.
I suggest that for next year's edition, in parallel, Ryan and Alexey are challenged to play an entire game as linebackers in the NFL by August. You know, so that they also venture out of their comfort zone.
Dang dude…I hope these guys don’t listen to a word you say. What an absolute toxic attitude. Mountain biking doesn’t need your attitude in our culture. It’s a shame guys like you throw spears at people like this that are making themselves better and get an opportunity of a lifetime to immerse themselves in the sport I have loved all my life. I’m jealous they got to ride 40 miles of such an iconic race, I’d love the opportunity to be a part of a project like this. The problem I have is you are looking at what these folks look like and judging their capability’s based on that. You have zero concept of what sort of improvement they have made or what their potential actually is.
@@ilanpi nope…that whole concept is not even the same…Leadville and many thousands of bike races cater to all levels of cyclists. I’m glad you think the sport is only reserved for the elite but it just isn’t. That’s one of the joys of mountain biking is there are thousands of races a year where the average joe gets to enjoy the thrill of racing even if there are elite pros riding the same race. Most races have categories which are specifically designed to get armatures into the sport. Leadville is just like a marathon…only one person is going to finish first but anybody who completes the race is amazing. Not sure if you noticed but the energy at that race seems to exude positivity. I just have a feeling you didn’t get into the race and now you are angry because somebody who isn’t as capable as you got a shot to beat the course. Leadville has always been about the course more than anything…it’s about you vs the pain.
@@airliftpilot I replied to you yesterday in order to explain my position, but you didn't comment, perhaps because there was not enough grist for your mill. Here is my previous response from yesterday: I have only been referring to people who have almost no chance of completing the race, that is, the ones chosen for this series, at least for last year. Contrary to what you implied, I totally respect all the amateurs who have trained hard and trained smart and who are able to complete the course, or who come close to completing the course but are unable to for reasons such as having a bad day or bad luck. As far as I can tell, all Leadville participants take this event very seriously, because they realize that this event does not forgive poor training, as is evident from all the ressources available for event preparation. On the other hand, I find this series offensive, because it chooses people who have little or no chance of coming close to finishing to have unrealistic expectations and to over extend themselves while risking bodily injury or just simply overuse injuries. I suspect that a significant percentage of total beginners having only six months to train for Leadville would develop tendonitis or some kind overuse injury. My point about riding the course on any other day applies to last year's non-finishers who would probably have had a better time trying out the entire course on a non race day, without the time cutoff constraint. To use your analogy, giving sedentary persons only 6 months to train for the Boston Marathon, without them having sufficient preparation for the distance, as is the case in this series, would result in a significant likelihood of them developing stress fractures if they actually completed the whole race. FYI: You might enjoy the 1978 movie "See How She Runs."
While I agree the event is far too challenging for these people within the timeframe the negative comments on here are ridiculous. My main concern is for their safety while there are people 'dumb they didn't finish, I want my money back'. Outside of concern for their actual well being I see no reason for people to be remotely upset. Need to find some hobbies. Maybe biking?
